Now, he is older. He is taller, he is broader, and he is more defined. His hair is thicker, and messier than ever before. He still has a short temper, but few people evoke it anymore. Well. Few people except her.
Now, he isn't afraid of anything – he is far too cool for that.
Well, ok…maybe he is still afraid of some things. The same things he had been afraid of in the past. But he doesn't admit it. Admitting you are afraid is weak. And now, James Potter is anything but weak.
Now, he realises that girls are far more than just giggly. They are HOT. Well, one girl is. She, unfortunately, doesn't think the same about him.
Other girls do though.
Now, he knows he is good-looking. He plays Quidditch, he works out – he is, quite honestly, a hell of a catch. Pity she doesn't think so. He knows he's smart too – he can turn into an animal at will, for Merlin's sake! Even fully-grown wizards can't necessarily do that.
Yes, he realises all those things. Unfortunately, what he doesn't realise is that in realising those things, he's become some other things too. Bigheaded. Conceited. Arrogant.
He doesn't realise that. Not even when she does. Not even when she tells him so.
Now, he still goes on adventures, albeit slightly bigger ones. He still waits on tomorrow when things don't go as planned. He can try again then.
He still doesn't know that he is running out of tomorrows to wait for.
Now, different things make him smile. Winning the Quidditch Cup. Sneaking out under the cloak with his best friends. Giving Snivelly a good curse up the…
Well, things have definitely changed. But not everything.
Now, he still hasn't experienced betrayal. His friends are far too good for that, he thinks. He doesn't realise that there is a traitor in their midst, someone that is going to take away his future.
He hasn't experienced true heartbreak, although he's convinced his heart shatters every time she rejects him. He doesn't know that in his future, she'll come round. That she'll love him too.
Now, loss and pain are still strangers to him. He is no longer oblivious, exactly – he knows they're out there. He just hasn't experienced them personally.
And right now, thankfully, he doesn't know that he will.